


A Better Tomorrow

by valentineninja



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Comfort Sex, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Post-Movie(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-31
Updated: 2016-05-31
Packaged: 2018-07-11 09:21:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7042318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valentineninja/pseuds/valentineninja
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The future ahead for them didn't seem as cloudy anymore.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Better Tomorrow

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is a companion fic to Dawn of a New Day and Sunshine After the Rain. I’ve had it sitting on my laptop for weeks and weeks and finally got around to editing. I really hope it isn’t too bad, or that I messed up any SW terms. Please forgive me if I did, as I am still learning my way around this wonderful community. Aside from that, I hope you all enjoy.:D Also... sex on the Falcon...

The night seemed to be cooler than usual as she sat in the dark, unable to find sleep. It had taken her some time to adjust to the different climates of the planet the Resistance had claimed as permanent headquarters and she still found that she dealt better with heat.

But the weather hadn’t been the reason for her restlessness. Her dreams had slowly morphed into nightmares more than once, which had reduced her to sitting in silence in the darkened room, trying not to wake the person next to her. Drawing her knees up against her chest, Rey glanced to her side and watched the slow rise and fall of Ben’s chest, steady and strong, reminding her that she wasn’t alone.

_You could’ve been,_ her brain reminded her. _You could’ve lost him._

Just that thought had been enough to keep her from finding proper rest. Anxiety and fear had been her constant companions in the last twenty-four hours. Starting when she had felt the disturbance in the force only before she had felt the phantom pain lance through her chest.

Her heart had nearly stopped beating in fear for his life, wondering what had happened, _why_ he had put himself in danger, never mind the fact that she could feel _everything_ thanks to the force bond shared.

Poe and Finn had brought him back nearly half-dead with no visible injuries, but in danger just the same. He had been placed into a Bacta tank that had thankfully extracted all traces of the substance from his body and had awoken that morning with a smile on his face just for Rey, unaware of just how affected she had been by his actions.

He had been released from medbay and had returned to their room to sleep for the rest of the afternoon and evening, his body recovering from the ordeal. The doctor had explained to her that it hadn’t been an actual poison but a substance that they had found in his blood that would need to be investigated.

A few hours in the Bacta tank and he had been as good as new, but the feelings of despair had somehow lingered on.

Rey hadn’t realized just how strongly she had been closed off from their bond until now, being that she couldn’t find peaceful sleep like she normally did. Their connection had always felt like a warm blanket, wrapping around her securely with his presence in the back of her mind. But she had done it to herself, not wanting to feel Ben slip away from her when death had been too close.

She let out a long, shuddering breath and stood, pulling on a pair a boots and the first robe within reach, which she realized belonged to Ben. As quietly as she possibly could, she slipped out of their rooms and wandered slowly down the corridors of the base, trying to clear her mind the way Master Luke had taught her. But it was no use. Her mind could not find peace as she continued to think on what would’ve happened had Ben been seriously hurt.

She had grown so accustomed to his presence, to his feelings and his thoughts in her own head that it felt as if she had found the other half of her soul. No matter how they had started out, Ben meant so much to her now.

Their base of operations had called lights out hours ago, though the darkness did not bother her… not anymore. She made her way down corridors by memory alone in the shadows. She hadn’t realized her destination until she turned a corner and reached a service door that led to the ship hangar.

The force made quick work of the alarm and the lock on the door as she slipped in, hoping she had shut off the appropriate equipment to avoid detection; Leia would skin her alive for trespassing, Rey knew.

The Millennium Falcon was quiet and looked positively ancient sitting amongst the newer, sleeker ships, but she couldn’t deny that the Falcon had become one of her favorite places to be in. Maybe because it had been the ship that had helped her, Finn, and BB-8 find freedom… or maybe because it had belonged to the man she had known for a short time but had seen as a father figure.

The why didn’t matter when she walked into the cockpit and felt her thoughts calm and quiet down.

The events of the day before had been a close call but it had brought forth a reminder that she had people in her life that she cared for and could lose at any moment. Her life had somehow been easier to live before, alone, where the only danger had been falling to her death and not being mourned, easily forgotten. Now though, now there were so many people who occupied her heart… and it terrified her to lose them, to be unable to protect them. 

And Ben… he meant the world to her. Of course she had known she had loved him… she just hadn’t been aware of how deep the love for this once broken man had run.

Pulling the robe around her body more snugly, Rey sat at the controls, in the captain’s chair. From Ben’s memories, she had seen so many days spent sitting in that chair, wondering when his father would teach him, take him into the stars, _spend any amount of time with him._ He had happy memories but she had seen that the sad ones far outnumbered the good memories.

Han Solo had perhaps not been the best of fathers, but his love for his only child had allowed him the ultimate sacrifice.

Ben seemed to harbor so many bittersweet feelings when concerning his father, with guilt added to the mix. That feeling, she suspected, would follow him for the rest of his days. 

A gentle flare in the back of her mind alerted her of Ben coming out of deep sleep, his consciousness attempting to connect with hers through the force bond, yet she kept up the barrier, unsure of letting him in.

Why she was doing it, she didn’t know. But she still felt vulnerable and on edge from the mission gone wrong. So many feelings were warring inside of her and her brain refused to quiet down.

“Rey?”

She nearly jumped out of her seat, not having felt or heard Ben approach from the outside. By the force, anyone could’ve snuck up on her… and just how long had she been lost in thought?

“I didn’t hear you come up,” she admitted sheepishly, unable to meet his eyes as he approached and sat in the co-pilot’s seat.

Ben frowned and stared at the side of her face in concern. “Is something going on?” he asked quietly. “You’re so distant. I woke up tonight and reached for you but you’re locked away so tight.”

Her eyes glittered with the beginning of tears as she finally turned to look at him, drinking his uniquely handsome face in with a desperation she’d never felt before. “You almost died,” Rey whispered as if that explained everything.

“It was not my intention to worry you,” he murmured, reaching for her hand and sighing in relief when her fingers slipped between his.

Rey felt her heart miss a beat at the look on his face. Had he thought that she blamed him for nearly dying? “I don’t—I’m sorry!” she muttered, standing and reaching for his face, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. “Of course I don’t blame you for a mission gone wrong. I was just so afraid when news came in. I think I just didn’t know how to process the idea that you were in danger.”

Ben sighed in relief and nodded as he stood and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug, nearly lifting her off the ground. “We were on a simple recon mission. The planet seemed like an uninhabited one but my uncle informed us of a force sensitive and sent us to investigate. They ambushed us and shot me with something that poisoned me to the point where I lost my grip on the force. It was unlike anything I had ever felt.”

Rey’s arms tightened around him in response. “What was it?” she asked, fearing for the sake of other force users… what if they had hidden enemies trying to find a way to destroy the resurging force sensitives?

“I don’t think they knew what it is that they have on their hands. We speculate that they are just using the substance as a tranquilizer for anyone looking to disrupt the order of their planet,” Ben said, sitting on the Captain’s Chair and pulling Rey onto his lap.

His fingers traced a gentle path over her jaw, his gaze on her as her eyes slipped closed.

“Everything is okay. I’m as good as new,” Ben reassured her in a low tone.

Rey nodded and slipped her arms around his neck in a hug, just needing to feel his body and his heartbeat close. She had spent so many long years alone on an isolated planet, with little to no companionship, no friends or family, and even less physical contact. A lot of the time all she needed from Ben was to hold his hand to calm her anxiety.

His lips were warm on her neck, his hand wandering under her sleeping tunic and dragging down the skin of her back, needing to feel her closer.

“There was a moment when I couldn’t feel you at all,” he whispered against the side of her mouth. “I thought I had lost you.”

Rey shook her head and kissed him, her heart singing at the contact. “I—as soon as I felt you waver… I blocked you out so that you wouldn’t take me with you,” she said, apologetic.

Ben shook his head and kissed her forehead. “It was the right thing to do. I put your life in danger and I am glad that you thought fast and pulled away. At least now we know…”

He trailed off and Rey felt a cold shiver race down her spine, understanding what he meant. Now they knew that she could survive without him. Maybe initially, Rey thought, but what kind of a life would she live without Ben in it? Hadn’t Master Luke described the breaking of a force bond as a wound that would never heal?

_Please don’t ever repeat that again. An existence without you…_ Rey trailed off, eyes feeling wet.

_I’m sorry. I never would’ve wished this upon you._

But she didn’t need to hear an apology from him now, so she leaned forward instead and met his lips in a kiss so desperate and full of relief.

Her fingers threaded through his silky hair as his hands easily maneuvered her thighs so that she could straddle him.

Rey’s breathing quickened as she tugged at his sleeping shirt, her hands sliding up defined muscle and hot skin. His mouth left hers to travel along her neck, kissing and nipping lightly, his hand pulling at the robe and the sleeping tunic she’d had on underneath.

Her blood was beginning to sing with his heated touch, hands tugging on the waistband of his pants, and Rey had no choice but to stand and tug her own pants down. Ben’s large hands nearly encircled her waist and Rey shivered as he twisted her around and brought her down, back pressed to his front.

“Wait—” she started, wanting to be facing him, kiss those warm, soft lips.

But there was no resisting Ben as his hands wandered up, deft fingers cupping her sensitive breasts, playing with the tips until the skin pulled taught and she cried out with the sensation. One questing hand left her breast to trail down, skimming the patch of curls, lower.

“Oh, Ben—!”

She was so very ready for him but his fingers coaxed her higher with gentle strokes against her nub, his hot breath against her neck and shoulder just as exciting.

“Let me in,” he whispered, knees settling between hers and drawing her thighs open.

_I am,_ she replied, head rolling against his shoulder, eyes tightly closed.

But she knew that there was still a part of herself she was holding onto… that last part that would allow them to completely fall into each other, becoming nearly one being; a complete whole…

His fingers left her only for him to reach underneath and position himself against her. Rey’s breath left her lungs in a loud exhale as he pressed forward, just the tip.

_Please… let me in._

This hadn’t been the way she had wanted to tell him.

All at once she let down that last barrier she had left just as he sunk into her willing body, stretching her to the brim, warm and pulsing and _so good._ Her breath caught in her throat as she arched forward, deepening their contact.

She could feel him in her head, the force bond seeming to just _click_ into place. Her eyes, so tightly shut, filled with tears once more as his feelings rushed into her like a tidal wave. So much love, affection, and… terror. Over losing her, and unwillingly harming her. Losing her was his ultimate fear and feeling her shut away from him had very nearly cracked that heart that she had worked so hard to piece together.

Her head, her heart, and her body felt overwhelmed all at once by him, his pleasure and hers magnified as he thrust up into her in long, slow strokes. And she wasn’t the only one.

The bond felt like a current that cycled between them, filling her with his thoughts and feelings as her own drifted into him. And he saw… he saw the reason why she had so desperately shielded herself against him, even as fear consumed her for his safety. How under any other circumstance she would’ve very much let herself die with him…

“Oh gods, Rey,” his voice shook as one of his large, graceful hands drifted from her waist to her stomach, still flat and firm. That would change soon, the med doctor had informed her only a few days before.

“I’m sorry,” she gasped, one hand drifting into his dark curls she loved so much.

_Don’t,_ he whispered. _I would’ve died happy, knowing that you would not be alone._

A sob lodged in her throat as his movements lost control by slow increments, his hips darting up hard and fast, his other hand finding her clit and rubbing against the sides, not touching directly. 

Her orgasm seemed to be fast approaching, her breathing coming in short pants and desperate groans as she stared at their reflection in the windows of the cockpit. They both looked so desperate to reach the end, looked as if they were in pain. But it wasn’t painful except for how deeply she could feel Ben in her head, how his thoughts and feelings seemed to jump from one point to another.

And yet her heart felt so full, just knowing that she was the cause of the range of emotions. This man who had still been a boy when she had first met him.

His skillful fingers rubbed harder and everything seemed to coalesce at once. Their connection, mind, body and soul.

Rey’s vision went white with pleasure, her head bumping into his shoulder as her back arched, her walls clenching around him as he let out a long, satisfied groan.

She could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his own release hit him, stealing the breath from his lungs. Rey felt a second wave wash over her as she felt his pleasure, his completion, and she cried out his name, feeling as if she couldn’t catch her breath.

“I—” he couldn’t form a coherent word past that, but Rey knew the words on the tip of his tongue.

She nodded and relaxed back against him. “I love you, too,” she murmured, smiling as she felt his lips press against her temple, her cheekbone.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to feeling you come,” he whispered, blushing despite the flush already on his cheeks.

Rey grinned and nodded. “Two for one, am I right?”

Laughter bubbled out of him as he pulled out and shuddered against her from the residual pleasure. “I think Chewie is going to wring our necks…”

“Can’t we just… disinfect?” Rey asked, pulling her tunic back on without standing; she didn’t know how reliable her knees would be after the amazing sex.

“You have no idea just how impressive a Wookie’s sense of smell is, do you?” Ben asked, pressing his forehead against her shoulder as his body cooled down.

Rey’s cheeks colored at the embarrassment of having to face Chewie after what she and Ben had done… and in the Captain’s Chair no less.

“He’ll get over it,” said Ben, helping her stand while he righted his clothes and pushed his hair out of his face. When all was replaced as best they could, he pulled her to his lap once more, his thumb brushing over her cheek. “Especially after you tell him that there’s a baby on the way,” he whispered.

Rey could feel his wonder at her news, but there was also fear and doubt, doubt that he would be a good father after all he had done in the past. She sighed and smiled, lips brushing over his jaw. “A new life, Ben. A way to start anew and not make the same mistakes we made in the past.”

Ben nodded, hand settled low on her belly, his eyes closing. “You’re sure you want to do this with _me_?”

On any other occasion she would’ve taken his words as an insult, but not today. Not after giving him news that would change their lives forever. “Of course I do. We’ll learn day by day. The question now is… do you want to do this with me? Raise a child, be a _father_?”

That one word seemed to strike something deep in him, a feeling that was still so raw in his heart, but he nodded and brushed his thumb across her cheek, eyes soft on her face. “I love you. And I… I’m sure we’ll be able to do this _together_.”

Rey felt her heart flutter in her chest in excitement. “It’s scary,” she murmured. “I’m so scared, Ben.”

He nodded and pulled her into one more kiss, feeling her love drift gently through their bond. Everything seemed so much better with her by his side. Of course he was terrified over being a father and repeating past mistakes, but he was receiving a chance to make up for all his wrong doings.

“I have no idea how we’ll be able to raise this kid properly,” she murmured with a grin.

“I guess we just make sure she eats and sleeps at the appropriate hours or when needed. How else can we kriff that up?” Ben asked with a smirk.

Rey smiled. “Why are you saying ‘she’?”

“Just a feeling I have,” he replied, thumb caressing the small patch of skin exposed by her rumpled sleeping tunic.

“What about diaper duty?!”

“…my mother can help with that, I’m sure.”

She giggled into his neck and shook her head. “I’m still terrified.”

“So am I,” Ben admitted, breath leaving him in one giant whoosh. “I don’t want her to hate me.”

She tried to soothe him with a caress of her love for him through the bond. “As long as you love her and you’re there for every special moment. You can’t go wrong with that. And when she’s old enough to understand, we’ll talk to her about our past.”

Ben nodded and gathered her in his arms before standing. The walk back to their rooms was quiet and peaceful, both feeling complete in a way they hadn’t just an hour ago.

Rey smiled as he settled into bed behind her, his nose in her hair and his hand wrapped protectively around her middle. She felt the exhaustion from the day before settle in and her eyes drooped heavily. Her body was sated and warm, and Ben was with her, their bond peaceful and comforting between them.

Their baby would grow up in a different world, different parents, and no wars. They wouldn’t be perfect, but at least they would be around to do their best to raise their child together.

When slumber finally claimed them, they both dreamt of a pretty little girl with dark curls and freckles across her nose and a smile to brighten any cloudy day.


End file.
